Chacha gives another jolt to Bhatija; merges QED with SP

Akhilesh had stalled the sitting MLA and notorious muscleman’s party’s merger with SP. Shivpal was said to have shepherded the merger

The `Chacha’ gave another jolt to his Bhatija when he announced a merger of jailed politician Mukhtar Ansari-led Qaumi Ekta Dal with the Samajwadi Party ahead of the crucial Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

“The go ahead of merger has been given by Mulayam Singh Yadav. I am making this announcement only after taking permission from the national president of the party,” Shivpal Yadav, state party president, said while making this announcement in Lucknow on Thursday.

Akhilesh had stalled the sitting MLA and notorious muscleman’s party’s merger with SP. Shivpal was said to have shepherded the merger. The merger of QED with SP was in the air the day Shivpal Singh Yadav was made State president. Since that day Afzal Ansari, the president of QED, had started claiming alliance with Samajwadi Party.

Shivpal Singh said that all the senior leaders of the party are on the same page on the issue of merger of QED with SP. When persistently asked whether the Chief Minister has been informed about the merger, Shivpal Singh said: “Akhilesh Yadav has been informed about this decision.”

He said Samajwadi Party is a democratic party and view of all the senior leaders are taken.

The merger of the two parties had earlier sparked off a battle between Akhilesh and Shivpal. On June 23, the CM had said in a rally in Jaunpur that SP does not need any alliance to retain power. “If we can manage booths, we will win the polls hands down,” he had said when the same day his chacha had announced the merger of the QED with the SP in Lucknow.

The same night, the CM removed Secondary Education minister Balram Singh Yadav from the ministry for his being instrumental in the merger.

Later, the Chief Minister had claimed that there was no dispute within the party or in the family over the merger. Whatever Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) says will be acceptable to us,” he had said.